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%\title{Regional center \\for astronomical research and education\\[20mm]
%Status of the research and education infrastructure
%RACIO \\5 years after its validation\\
%Sofia, May 2014}
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\includegraphics[scale=0.3]{logo_SU.jpg}
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\includegraphics[scale=0.2]{logo_NAO.jpg}
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\includegraphics[scale=0.6]{logo_AC_ShU.jpg}

\section{Description of Institute of Astronomy and
National astronomical Observatory
at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences}
\subsection{The Institute}
The Institute of Astronomy (IA) is the largest institution in Bulgaria for professional astronomical research. It was founded in 1995 as the successor of the Department of Astronomy (DA) with National Astronomical Observatory. The DA at the Physical Institute of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) was founded in 1953 and from 1958 it became a self-dependent branch of BAS. 
The Institute of Astronomy carries out fundamental research in observational astronomy, as well as theoretical investigations on the origin and evolution of cosmic objects. In correspondence to the fields of research, the scientific activities of IA are distributed among four departments: Sun and Solar System, Stars and stellar systems, Galaxies and cosmology and Astroinformatics.  IA has scientific relations and co-operation with other institutions in Bulgaria having astronomical departments: the Space Research and Technology Institute, the Sofia University Faculty of Physics Department of Astronomy,  and the Shumen University Department for Applied and Theoretical physics. Partner organizations of IA abroad are more than 100 institutions from Austria, Belgium, Canada, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia, UK, USA, Russia, Ukraine, etc. IA is an active partner in the SUB-REGIONAL EUROPEAN ASTRONOMICAL COMMITTEE (SREAC), sponsored by UNESCO-BRESCE. The present staff of the IA includes seventy-nine persons (PhD students are not included in this number). The distribution of the staff members, in accordance to their positions, is shown in figure 2.

	\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[scale=1.0]{Staf.jpg} 
\caption{Distribution of the staf of the Institute of astronomy with NAO (includes also the staff of AOB}
	\end{figure}

  
 
Fifty two scientific projects were developed in the IA over the period 2009-2013. 
These include 12 projects of the institute, 
13 projects with the National Science Foundation, 1 projects sponsored by UNESCO\-ROSTE, 
2 projects with ministries in Bulgaria, 
2 projects under the EU Operational programs and 22 bilateral inter academic projects.  
The total number of scientific publications over the period 2009-2013 is 506. 
Over the same period the total number of citations is more than 1400. 
There are more than 130 papers published in the major European (Astronomy \& Astrophysics, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Astron. Nachrichten, ApSS), American (Astrophysical Journal, Astronomical Journal, Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, Icarus). The rest have been published in national national (Bulg. J. Phys., Bulg. Astr. J.) journals  for professional astronomy, as well as in conference proceedings. 

In the past 5 years 12 PhD students worked at the IANAO, 7 of them defended their PhD thesis.
In spite of the century-old tradition in training and preparation of qualified specialists and of the success recently achieved in the field of scientific research, observational, educational, qualifying, and popularizing activities, astronomy in Bulgaria experiences difficulties to keep the good specialists, mainly due to lack of funds for salaries and for modernization and extension of the observational equipment. Even though recognized as a leader in the region, especially in the field of the spectroscopy and optical photometry, IA cannot hold yet its well-deserved position in the European family of astronomical observatories, remaining outside of the large-scale astronomical initiatives and structures like OPTICON, NEON, ESO. Like other East European countries, Bulgaria makes big efforts to stimulate its economy and to reform and modernise the existing scientific structures. However, the funds for science, provided by the government, are extremely insufficient; that is why our country faces real difficulties in the process of integration into the European Research Area.
Co-work with young people is one of the main activities stated in the strategic plan for the future development. By modernizing the observational facilities at NAO Rozhen, we aim to extend the range of astronomical projects, based on original observational data, and thus to make Astronomy more attractive for the young people in Bulgaria and in the region.
The Institute of Astronomy operates two observatories for optical astronomical observations: The National Astronomical Observatory „Rozhen“ (NAO-Rozhen) and The Belogradchik Astronomical Observatory  (BAO), as well as the infrastructure needed for them. 

\subsection{The National Astronomical Observatory „Rozhen“ }
Rozhen National Astronomical Observatory (NAO) is in operation since 1980. It is located approximately 80 km southward from the second largest city in Bulgaria – Plovdiv in the Rhodopes mountains at 1750 m above sea level. Rozhen NAO comprises of four telescopes: universal 200 cm Ritchey-Chrétien-Coudé reflector, 50/70 cm Schmidt telescope, 60 cm Cassegrain telescope - all three made by Carl Zeiss factory, and 15 cm Lyot coronagraph. The 200 cm telescope has coudé and direct focuses, it is equipped with two liquid nitrogen cooled professional CCD cameras, UBVRI and interference filter sets, and two-channel focal reducer. Smaller telescopes are equipped with thermo-electric cooled CCD cameras and UBVRI filter sets.
	The Observatory has been established as a highest level academic center for acquisition, analysis, archiving and disseminating of the scientific data. With its facilities and capabilities Rozhen NAO is the biggest astronomical complex in South-East Europe in the field of optical astronomy. The Observatory is included in the European Portal on Research Infrastructures Database ( www.riportal.eu/ ). Due to the Ritchey-Chrétien optical layout the 200 cm telescope provides direct imaging of the sky with high spatial resolution (12.8 “/mm). Coudé spectrograph allows obtaining the high signal-to-noise, high resolution (up to 35000) stellar spectra. A two channel focal reducer, mounted at the RC focus, allows several additional modes of observations - narrow-band and broad band imagin, low-dispersion spectroscopy and spectropolarimetry, polarimetric and Fabry-Perot imaging. 
		
	Several upgrades of the 2 meter telescope were accomplished during the last 5 years. In 2008 the main mirror and the first deflecting mirror to Coude were recoated with a new reflective layer. In 2009,  a new telescope control system was installed. In 2013 a fiber-fed, optical bench mounted, echelle spectrograph was designed, manufactured, and assembled. The most recent improvement of the observing facilities is related to the focal reducer - a lambda/2 retarder was purchased by Armagh observatory to be used for collaborative projects based on  polarimetric observations of astronomical objects.    
	
	\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[scale=0.18]{2m-dome-NAO.jpg} 
\hfill
\includegraphics[scale=0.48]{2m.jpg}
\caption{Left: The dome of the 2-meter telescope. Right: The 2-meter Ritchey-Chretien-Coude telescope.}
	\end{figure}

The smaller telescopes of NAO are 60 cm Cassagrain, 50/70/172 cm Schmidt, and a 15 cm Lyot coronograph.	
With its large field of view the Schmidt telescope is used mainly for studying small bodies in the Solar System.  Many kinds of variable stars and objects have been observed with 60 cm Cassegrain telescope. Solar coronagraph with H-alpha filter is used to register the dynamic events in solar corona. Scanning microdensitometer MDM6 and Epson 10000XL scanner are available for digitizing the plate archive of the Observatory. Internal network structure contains about 30 workstations, two servers, several wireless hot spots, and approximately 2 km of fibers. Computer class with ten computers, a conference hall with sixty seats and multimedia, twelve offices, some small apartments as well as hotel-like rooms for seventy persons are also accessible at the main Observatory building.

	\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[scale=0.58]{11-fig-Schmidt-60cm.jpg} 
\hfill
\includegraphics[scale=0.37]{Schmidt_telescope.jpg}
\caption{The smaller telescopes at NAO. Left: The domes of the 60 cm Cassagrain and of the Schmidt telescope (in foreground). Right: The 50/70 cm Schmidt telescope}
	\end{figure}

 
	After almost thirty years of its functioning Rozhen NAO has already gained world-wide recognition as a valuable source of unique astronomical information. More than one thousand scientific papers,  based on data obtained with the 200 cm telescope alone,  have been published so far.  They contribute substantially to many research fields of the contemporary astronomy – from physics of comets and asteroids, through stellar wind structure, anomalous abundance pattern of stellar atmospheres, tidal interactions and mass transfer in binary systems, through pulsating, flare and symbiotic stars, star-formation regions, stellar complexes and clusters in our Galaxy to the overall structure of near-by galaxies, and to active galactic nuclei and quasars.	Rozhen NAO is a very suitable place to organizing scientific meetings, schools, professional training courses, and astronomical practices for university and high-school students from the country and all around South-East Europe. Few thousands tourists and visitors hang out at the Observatory every year. Small 18 cm Celestron is at their disposal to give them a fresh look at the skies during the summer nights.  

\subsection{The Belogradchik  Astronomical Observatory} 
	The  Belogradchik Astronomical Observatory (BAO) was built in  the period  1961 - 1965 and till 1974  was used as a satellite tracking station. In 1968 it was equipped with a 60cm Cassegrain telescope and in 1971 – with an UBV photoelectric photometer. 
	After joining to the Department of Astronomy of BAS in 1976 it became full profesional astronomical unit. The altitude of the observatory  is 610m  and its coordinates are:  longitude  1h 30m 41s  and latitude  43$^{\circ}$37$'$ 22$"$.  
	During the years the observatory hosted many international meetings and schools of astronomy. In 1994 the observatory was equipped with a 36-cm Celestron telescope of Schmidt-Cassegrain type. 
	Currently two main modes of multi-band observations are carried out regularly: photoelectric observations with a single channel photometer, and direct imaging with a CCD camera. For about ten years a SBIG ST8 CCD has been used, in 2008 the 60 cm telescope was equipped with a Finger Lakes Instruments research grade CCD,  PL09000. The photometer uses GPS and its management is fully computerised. The data obtained are suitable for research in the fields of astrometry, astrophysics of some peculiar types variable stars and extragalactic objects. The observatory is open for student and tourist visits. 

\newpage
\section{Description of the Department of Astronomy,
St Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia}

St Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia (SU, http://www.uni-sofia.bg) is the largest and oldest (120 years old) institution of higher education in Bulgaria. It is also the second largest centre for scientific research in the country after the Bulgarian Academy of Science. 
	
	Founded in 1894, the Astronomical Observatory and the Department of Astronomy  (http://www.phys.uni-sofia.bg/~astro) of the SU is the oldest astronomical institution in Bulgaria from which later emerged all other astronomical institutions, e.g the Institute of Astronomy at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. Up to date the Department is the only one responsible for the higher education of all three levels (BS, MSc and PhD) in the field of astronomy and astrophysics in Bulgaria. The annual graduation rate of students from the Department is: 4 - 8 BS, 3 - 5 MSc and 1 PhD. A significant number of our alumni further their education and/or find employment in prestigious astronomical institutions worldwide. 
	The facilities, the Department of Astronomy has are:
	\begin{itemize}
\item 10 offices and a small laboratory, situated at the Faculty of Physics
\item Astronomical Observatory, Borissova Gradina, Sofia,  with 2 telescope domes,  2 building containing 4 offices, one lecture hall and 2 technical laboratories and a meridian circle building
\item Student Astronomical Observatory, situated at the Geodesic Observatory Plana. 	
	\end{itemize}
\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[scale=0.5]{card_from_AO_Sofia.jpg}
\caption{The Astronomical Observatory, Borissova Gradina, Sofia. Left: The historical Grubb telescope. Top right: The old building with lecture room and offices. Bottom right: The radio telescope for educational purposes.}
\end{figure}
At the disposal of the undergraduate students in the Department there are a number of small astronomical instruments: a historical 6” Grubb refractor, 14” CGE1400 Celestron, equipped with  LHIRES III spectrograph with SBIG ST-1603 CCD camera, 14” Newton telescope, equipped with SBIG STL-11000M large-format CCD camera, two old-fashioned 15 cm telescopes (Zeiss Meniskas and AT 150) and a Small Radio Telescope SRT. There are also a number of smaller 6 cm and 8 cm Zeiss refractors for visual observing. The graduate students are also regularly using the observational facilities of the Institute of Astronomy.
	
	At present the permanent staff of the Department numbers 13, of which 4 are associate  professors, 2 are chief assistant professors, 1 is an assistant professor, 2 are researchers and 3 are technical staff. In addition, there are also 2 PhD students. The majority of the staff is involved in various cutting-edge research projects at both national (mainly with the Institute of Astronomy and the National Astronomical Observatory and the Bulgarian National Science Fund) and international levels (e.g. Centre de Recherche Astrophysique de Lyon and Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, France, Armagh Observatory, UK, Gran Telescopio de Canarias, Spain, Zentrum fuer Astronomie Heidelberg, Germany, National Observatory of Athens and National and Kapodistrian University  of Athens, Greece, Gemini South and the University of Valparaiso, Chile). In the last five years as a result of the Department's research 90 papers, 35 of which were published in high-impact scientific journals. Part of these publications are in collaboration with scientists from the IANAO.
	
	Besides the standard university educational programmes the Department effectively performs a number of additional educational activities. These activities are oriented to young astronomers, teachers-physicists and students from secondary and elementary schools. A number of undergraduate and postgraduate research projects are carried out in the Department lead by the staff or in collaboration with the staff of the Institute of Astronomy, the University of Shumen and the Public Astronomical Observatories and Planetaria. An example of such activity is the unique Beli Brezi Summer School (http://astro-brezi.org), held annually since 1970. 
	
	Astronomy courses for high-school teachers from all over Bulgaria, with talks on selected topics on modern Astronomy and Astrophysics, are presented regularly in order to cover the National Educational Standards of the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science. The staff of the Department is developing a number of astronomical/astrophysical schoolbooks and resources and tools in Bulgarian for use by teachers and students in high schools in close collaboration with the teachers. Each year open days for schools to the facilities of the Department enable children from all over Bulgaria to get an insight in the work of professional astronomer and their instruments. Other outreach activities include organised visits of the Astronomical Observatory, Sofia, of school groups with ages 10 to 18, where the children get acquainted with the  astronomical instruments and are given talks on various astronomical topics. 
	
For educational purposes mainly, the Department of Astronomy has signed a collaboration agreement with the Geodesic Observatory Plana (http://plana.cc.bas.bg), situated only 30 km from Sofia and accessible by public transport.  A  35 cm Newton  telescope is installed with a SBIG STL 11000M CCD camera. The purpose is to have a near-by, easily accessible observational site, where both undergraduate and graduate students can obtain additional hand-on experience in observational astronomy. The instrumentation can also be used for research purposes.
	
\newpage 
\section{Description of the Astronomical center, 
Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen} 


Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen (Shumen University(ShU), www.shu-bg.net) is a national High school that provides education in a wide sphere of specialties in the field of Humanities, Natural, Technical and Social Sciences. It is founded almost 40 years ago.
 Shumen University has the following specific characteristics.
•	It is founded in a kind of town, that has a significant contributions in the education developing in Bulgaria, i.e. Shumen University is an University of Tradition. 
•	Shumen Univeristy is a member of the Association of the Classical Universities in Bulgaria 
•	Shumen University is an University of Tolerance because students of different ethnical groups study here 
•	Shumen University is a member of the European Association of Universities.
•	Shumen University is being certified for the qualification education under the international system ISO 2000.
The Astronomical Center of ShU is founded in 1997 with 3 main responsibilities: (i) education of the students in astronomy; (ii) research in astronomy; (iii) popularization of the astronomy. 
An astronomical dome with 3-m diameter was built in 1999 where 15-cm telescope "Meniskas" with astrocamera was set. Around the dome there is a platform for observation with small amateur telescopes (two 6-cm refractors, 6.5-cm reflector “Alkor”, visual tube and 6 sextants). 
The Astronomical center of ShU has also 2 studies for the staff with a rich library and 6 computer configurations with a modern software as well as a laboratory for practical exercises with 10 computers,  Schnell photometer, sextants, stellar maps, etc.
The academic staff of the Astronomical center of ShU consists of 2 full professors, 1 associate professor, 2 assistants, 1 PhD student. 
The education in astronomy of students from the physical specialities in ShU has 25 years tradition. From the academic 2004/2005 year there is a specialty Astronomy, bachelors’ degree and Astrophysics Master degree, in ShU. It got successfully accreditation in 2013 both in the distant form and the full timed form of education. The staff of the Astronomical center created above 10 books for the students of the speciality Astronomy: Spherical Astronomy; History of Astronomy; Astrophysics; Variable Stars; Plasma Astrophysics, Planetary physics, Celestial mechanics, etc. 
The staff of the Astronomical center realized also the education in Astronomy of the students in specialities: Physics; Geodesy; Biology \& Physics. 
Since 2013 the Astronomical center of Shumen University got accreditation for education of PhD students in Astrophysics and Stellar astronomy.
The Astronomical center has the equipment required for the practical education in Astronomy. It makes the ShU the only University excepting the Sofia University which provides observational practice for students. Furthermore, under the agreement between the Institute of Astronomy of BAS and Shumen University, summer practice with professional telescopes of the students from the specialty Astronomy is realized at the National Astronomical Observatory\-Rozhen.
The observational equipment of the Astronomical Center of ShU is used also for popularization work. Both observations and media press-conferences are organized for each significant astronomical event (eclipse, passage, etc.). 
The scientific investigations of the staff of the Astronomical Center of ShU in the area of variable stars (RS CVn stars, cataclysmic stars, eclipsing W UMa stars, exoplanets) have significant results and over 70 papers are published in the main European astronomical journals in astronomy. The staff of the Astronomical Center of ShU has taken part in the work of 9 international, 6 national and 6 regional scientific projects. 
Recently Shumen astronomical team was partner in the European educational projects “COSMOS”, “Pathway – The Pathway to Inquiry Based Science Teaching” and “LDSkills”. Workshops for high-school teachers from all over the Bulgaria with talks and presentations on selected topics on modern Astronomy and Astrophysics were organized at different places of the country from the staff of the Astronomical Center of ShU in the framework of these projects.
Moreover, Shumen astronomers were coordinator of the project “Student practice in astronomy” of the program of the EU “Development of the human resources”. 
\begin{figure}
\includegraphics[scale=0.16]{Shu_AC-tel.jpg}
\hfill
\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{astrodom_AC_ShU.jpg}
\caption{Left: The 3-meter dome with the 15-cm telescope. Right: Design of the future astro-dom for the 16-inch MEADE telescope and auxiliary infrastructure.}
\end{figure}
The Astronomical center of Shumen University was beneficent of the important scientific project „SMARTNET”: A Network of remote-controlled and robotic small astronomical telescopes in Bulgaria”. It was funded by the program “IDEAS” 2008 of the National Scientific Foundation of the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science. This project allowed providing of new astronomical equipment for all 4 partners in the framework of around 75000 evro. The main new facility for Shumen University was 16-inch MEADE telescope. The new astrodome for this telescope should be built till the end of 2014. 
Now the astronomical team of Shumen University is partner of the European project 543451-LLP-1-2013-1-GR-KA3-KA3MP- GEOTHNK ,“Semantic pathways for building a spatially-thinking society” (2013-2015), programme Lifelong learning 
So, the Shumen University has a national and international recognition as a third center in Bulgaria for education and scientific research in astronomy (after the Institute of Astronomy of the Bulgarian Academy of Science and Sofia University). 



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